It takes more than gear to build a community. Est. 1995.

NAMM Winter Meeting 2018 — At the Crossroads of the Music Industry

In defense of Rickenbacker...... They had around 30 to 40 guitars hanging in their booth (my estimate). My guess is that they want to do as little touch up as possible in order to sell the guitars as 'new'. They are not a large mass producer, so 30 to 40 instruments represents a higher percentage of their production than a lot of other manufacturers. I also believe that RIC is at NAMM 95% for the wholesale orders and 5% so that the unwashed masses can visually oogle their instruments.

In defense of Rickenbacker...... They had around 30 to 40 guitars hanging in their booth (my estimate). My guess is that they want to do as little touch up as possible in order to sell the guitars as 'new'. They are not a large mass producer, so 30 to 40 instruments represents a higher percentage of their production than a lot of other manufacturers. I also believe that RIC is at NAMM 95% for the wholesale orders and 5% so that the unwashed masses can visually oogle their instruments.

– beatbyrd

I suspect that you are correct that they really have no interest in dealing with consumers there. They are just looking for buyers of large orders. It has been my experience at past Shows that John Hall himself, whom I have absolutely no ax to grind about, is pretty reclusive during the Show. When you have a question about a particular guitar, they may give you a brief response, but they aren't there to schmooze with the public.

And, of course, I have no ax to grind with Rickenbacker in general. I do have two of their guitars and have always liked the brand and its tremendous history.

I could be mistaken, but I am not sure that there is a legitimate need for a gas can guitar. Or is there?

– Ric12string

Those are actually pretty cool Bob, its a take on the Cigar boxes. They do sound pretty good and building one is a fairly easy project.
I made a cigar box guitar out of surplus parts and its a fun little instrument. tune it to Open G and have a blast. Try one , you'll like it. The 3 string versions are my favorite.

Don't feel bad, Tavo. I was showing off that Electro Anni model to my friend Irving (Romero, of The 454s) and pointing out all its finer points that you only see on Pro Line Gretsches, and he laughed and pointed to the "Electromatic" on the pickguard. And this was pretty early on in the show. Glad I took yesterday off to recover, and yes, I need one of those Electros, too. After I get that new Reverend.

Don, I passed by the Larrivee booth, but did not spend any time there. It was on Saturday and they were downstairs in the basement. There seemed to be a lot of activity there. Are you a particular fan of their guitars? I know that they have a good reputation, much like Collings. I would be interested in learning more about them.

Excellent coverage by Ric12 as always. Here are some pics I took. I made a beeline to the Gretsch booth because I really wanted to check out the new Duane Eddy 6 string bass guitar. I was lucky enough to get some time to plug it in and play. I'm a long time fan of 6 string bass guitars, having had a reissue Danelectro 6 and currently a Fender VI. The new DE 6 is it's own animal. Being a hollow body with Dynasonics, it sounds like an extension of Duane's 6120 - it's bright but full bodied in a way that I haven't found with other 6 string basses. This assessment was solidly re-affirmed when Duane himself demo'd it on Friday, but more of that in a moment. For now, suffice to say it was a hard instrument to put down.

My next stop after the Gretsch booth was to see the new Fenders. The American Vintage Reissue series appears to have been replaced with the American Original series. I don't recall offhand what the differences are between the two series, but I can say the Jaguars and Jazzmasters I picked up had really nice necks and some sharp finishes.

On Friday, I got to the Gretsch booth early to get a good spot for Duane Eddy's appearance. In the meantime, I spent more time admiring the Gretsch lineup. These two Anniversary models really caught my eye for the dual color finishes. The blue on the left guitar was almost shimmering!

Three Broadcasters here. If I were ever in the market for a 335 style semi-solid, the Broadcaster would be at the top of the list. The flame on the walnut one is gorgeous and the headstock veneer matches.